Quick-change electro-holder for printing machines



July 5, 1932. I E MUELLER 1,865,478

QUICK CHANGE ELECTROHOLDER FOR PRINTING'MACHINES Filed July 50, 1950Ill/m INVENTOR in; ATTORNEY Patented July 5, 1932 EMIL L. MUELLER, FRUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY QUICK-CHANGE ELECTED-HOLDER FOR PRINTING MACHINESApplication filed Jul so, 1930. Serial No. 471,728,

This invention 7 relates to a quick-change electro-holder for printingmachines, and an objectof the invention is to provide aprinting machineembodying'simple and practical means to facilitate the rapidand easyexchange of electros tllBIGlIL' A more detailed object is to provideelectro retaining means manually operable to qulckly and easily releasean electro and to as quickly and easily grip and hold another electrosubstituted for the first, repeatedly as often as may be desired.

.A further object is to so construct the device that it may becontrolled by movement of an operators foot, thus leaving the operatorshands free to manipulate the various elements of the printing machineincluding the removal and'renewel of electros.

Other objects and aims of the inventlon, more or less specific thanthose referred to above, will be in part obvious and in part pointed outin the course of the following description of the elements,combinations, arrangements of parts and applications of principlesconstituting the invention ;vand the scope of protection contemplatedwill be indicated in the appended claims.

In theaccompanying drawing which is to be taken as a part of thisspecification, and

in which I have shown merely-a'preferred form of embodiment of the.invention Fig. 1 is a top plan View of a portion of a printing machinehaving an electro-holding device therein constructed in accordance withthis invention.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view substantially upon the plane of lineII-II of Fig. 1, and i Fig. 3is an enlarged detail sectional view uponthe plane of line III-III of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing for describing in detail the structure which isillustrated therein, the reference character L indicates a'main bedortable top, carried upon suitable supporting legs 1' and supporting aresilient electro having printing characters as 5 platen roll 2 which inthe instance illustrated is movable in a horizontal plane along racks 3,the roller 2 having gear teeth 4 which ride upon the racks.

The reference character G indicates an formed upon its upper face in theusual manner adapted for printing upon the under-sur face of a sheet ofpaper as 6 laid thereon and pressed against the characters by the roll2.

The roll 2 travels along the racks 3 from a position over the electro toa position at one side of the electro so that when the roller is not inprinting position the electro is exposed and is accessible to theoperator for removal. 7

The electro as illustrated consists of a rectangular fiat sheet of metalhaving the characters 5 at its upper surface. Its opposite longitudinalmarginal edges as at 7 and S are beveled and it rests fiat upon theupper surface of a supporting plate 9 which is made up as a part of, oris fixed to, the bed L. A stop strip 10 is provided at one edgelof theplate 9 having its edge surface as at 11, be'v -0 eled tomate the bevelof the edge6 ofthe electro, the bevel of said strip being in the form ofan under-cut so that the edge of the electro willproject beneath arelatively overhangin'g portion of the strip.

Carried by the supportingplate is a clamp .member 12 mounted to slidealong the upper surface of the plate toward andaway from the strip 10.The member 12 is beveled at its edge facing the strip 10,'as at 13, thebevel being opposite to the bevel of the edge 11 of strip 10 and matesthe bevel of the edge 8 of the electro so that it provides a portionrelatively overhanging a portion of the electro to thereby co-operatewith the strip 10 for providingineflect an under-cut groove withinwhichthe electro is engaged when the clamp member is pressed against theelectro.

' The member-12 is connected with a slide 7 rod 14 which is movablelongitudinally with- 90 in a bore 15 provided to receive it within thesupporting plate 9. This slide rod projects beyond the plate 9 andcarries a compression spring 16 one end of which presses against an edgesurface as 17 of the supporting plate and the opposite end of whichpresses against a collar 18 formed upon the rod. The spring 16 is thusarranged for urging the clamp member 12 always toward clamping positionagainst the electro.

There may be only one clamp member 12 if desired, but preferably two ormore such clamp members areemployed, as illustrated, each havingoperating parts connected thereto as just described.

At a point beyond the collar 18 each of the slide rods 14 has a stifflink as 19 pivotally connected thereto as at 20. These links have theiropposite ends pivotally connected to a pair of rocker arms 21 as at 22which are fixed upon a rock shaft 23 oscillatably mounted in bearings 24carried by the main frame. An arm 25 projects laterally from the shaft23 and has a stiff link as 26 pivotally connected thereto as at 27. Theopposite end of link 26 is pivotally connected as at 28 to one. arm of abell crank lever 29 which is oscillatably mounted upon a shaft 30carried by the bed or table frame L. The opposite arm of the bell cranklever has pivoted thereto as at 31 a stifi' link 32 which extends intopivotal connection as at 33 with a foot lever 34. The lever 34 ispivotally mounted upon a carrying shaft 35. r

This linkage mechanism provides a simple and practical means whereby thefoot lever 34 is adapted for moving the clamp members 12 simultaneouslyout of gripping engagement against the electro at any moment desired bythe operator. 7

A slight pressure of the operators foot against the lever 34 willcounter-act the pressure of springs 16 and release the electro so thatthe operator, with his hands, may lift the electro away and substituteanother therefor before releasing the foot lever. Release of'the footlever will enable the springs to again move the clamp members 12 toclamping position. And this removal of one electro, and the substitutionof another in its place, may be effected very rapidly and as frequentlyas may be desired by the operator.

The device as thus constructed is admirably adapted for use in instanceswhere only one copy, or a very few copies areto be made off eachelectro.

As a convenient means by which to ad just the mechanism for cO-Operationwith electros of difierent sizes it is suggested that the clamp members12 may be adjustably connected with the slide rods 14 so as to becapable of being held in any selected one of a number of differentpredetermined positions lengthwise of said slide rods. The

clamp members 12 may be connected with the slide rods for instance byscrews as 36 which extend through holes 37 in the clamp members andwhich are threaded into holes as 38 provided spaced apart along thelength of the slide rods. The screws may extend through any selectedpair of the holes 37 and many he engaged within any selected pair of theholes 38, according to the position desired for the clamp memberslongitudinally of the slide rods.

It is. noted that while the provision of beveled edegs upon the electro,and of relatively under-cut beveled edges upon the strip 10 and clampmembers is desirable in most instances, yet the edges of the electro andof the strip 10 and of the clamp members may be formed without a bevelor under-cut if desired, in which instance the strip 10 will constitutea simple stationary shoulder upon the supporting plate, and the clampmembers will constitute simple spring pressed shoulders, the opposingfaces of the stationary and spring pressed-shoulders being parallel toeach other or otherwise as may be preferred.

Any appropriate means may be employed for insuring that both or all ofthe clamp members 12 shall be sure to move into proper tight engagementwith the electro whenever the foot lever is released. In the structureherein illustrated this is accomplished by providing a loose connectionbetween the links 19 and their operating arms 21, as through the mediumof the slots 39 shown.

As many changes could be made in this construction without departingfrom the scope of. the invention as defined in the following claims, itis intended that all matter contained in the above description, or shownin the accompanying drawing, shall be interpreted as illustrative onlyand not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is 1. In a quick-change electro-holder forprinting machines an electro-supporting plate having a flat surface uponwhich the electro may rest, said supporting plate also having a shoulderthereon against which an edge of the electro may engage, a clamp membermovable toward and away from said shoulder, said clamp member providinga second shoulder in opposed relation to the first shoulder and adaptedto engage an opposite edge of the electro, a slide rod slidably carriedby the supporting plate, said slide rod having a series of threadedapertures therein spaced apart longitudinally thereof selectively usablefor the attachment of the clamp member to said slide rod, screwsengageable in selected apertures of the rod to thereby fix the clampmember in a selected position of adjustment longitudinally of the rodand means manually operable to move the slide rod. I

2. In a quick-change electro-holder for printing machines, anelectro-supporting plate having a fiat surface upon which the electromay rest, said supporting plate also having a shoulder thereon againstwhich an edge of the electro may engage, a plurality of independentlymovable clamp members movable toward and away from said shoulder, springmeans normally urging the clamp members independently of each other inthe direction of said shoulder, a single manually movable member, andconnections between said clamp members and said manually mov able memberwhereby to effect operation of said clamp members collectively bymanipulation of said single manually movable member, said connectionsincluding means allowing movement of one clamp member to clampingposition after another clamp member has reached clamping position.

3. In a quick-change electro-holder for printing machines, anelectro-supporting plate having a fiat surface upon which the electromay rest, said supporting plate also having a shoulder thereon againstwhich an edge of the electro may engage, a plurality of independentlymovable clamp members movable toward and away from said shoulder, springmeans normally urging the clamp members independently of each other inthe direction of said shoulder, a single manually movable member, andconnections between said clamp members and said manually movable memberwhereby to effect operation of said clamp members collectively bymanipulation of said single manually mbvable member, said connectionsincluding parts movable with the clamp members respectively and anotherpart movable with the manually movable member, said last part having pinand slot connection with the clamp member parts of a character to allowmovement of one clamp member to clamping position after another clampmember has reached clamping position.

4. In a quick-change electro-holder for printing machines, anelectro-supporting plate having a flat surface upon which the electromay rest, said supporting plate also having a shoulder thereon againstwhich an edge of the electro may engage, a plurality of independentlymovable clamp members movable toward and away from said shoulder, springmeans normally urging the clamp members independently of each other inthe direction of said shoulder, a single manually movable member, andconnections between said clamp members and said manually movable memberwhereby to elfect operation of said clamp members collectively bymanipulation of said single manually movable member, said connectionsincluding parts movable with the clamp members respectively each havinga slot therein extending longitudi- EMIL L. MUELLER.

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